PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Thursday quashed and set aside the Goa Children’s Court’s order sentencing a teacher to undergo one day’s simple imprisonment and to pay a fine of Rs one lakh for assaulting two students (sisters) at Mormugao.
In April 2019, the Goa Children’s Court had held the school teacher guilty and sentenced her to undergo one-day simple imprisonment and to pay a fine of Rs one lakh or in default to undergo simple imprisonment for one-year for the offence punishable under Section 8 (2) of Goa Children’s Act, 2003.
She was also sentenced to pay a fine of Rs 10,000 for the offence punishable under Section 324 of IPC and in default to undergo six months simple imprisonment.
However, the teacher filed an appeal before the High Court challenging the order of the trial Court.
Arguing on behalf of the appellant, Adv Arun Bras De Sa submitted that being a school teacher, she was having every authority to correct a student, committing mistakes or even not maintaining discipline. If the teacher tries to correct students for their mistakes and in order to discipline them, cannot be construed as offence under the IPC or under the Goa Children’s Act.
He said that the teacher had tried to correct the victim by saying that she should bring sufficient water for herself in her own bottle and should not consume the water from the bottles of other students, cannot be construed as an offence at all.
The only intention of the teacher is to maintain discipline and to inculcate good habits in a child/student so that such student would be an asset to the society in future.
“If a teacher is put behind bars for such trivial act and that too for keeping discipline amongst the students or to correct a child for mistakes, would be a disaster. A teacher will not be able to control the class in proper manner. The very purpose of the school and the teaching would suffer,” Adv De Sa told the Court.
